Xavier Cha

Cha has produced a series of short films capturing actors as they battle conflicting emotions, held in tense states of physical and psychological discord. While outwardly (and non-linguistically) expressing an extreme emotion, such as livid rage, a more subtle emotion emerges from beneath the surface. Both emotions function as foreign agents attempting to gain dominance, or hijack the vehicle of the actor’s facial expression and body. This new work continues Cha’s exploration of the body, individual, and self, and how these are contained, expressed, and mediated. Her performance-based works formalizes subjectivity within contemporary culture, isolating elements of production, perception, and communication into bare, abstract, and often illogical experience. abduct is produced in partnership with the Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland. After its debut for Frieze Film, the work will be presented as an expanded installation, accompanied by live performances, for Cha’s upcoming solo exhibition (January 29 – May 8, 2016), organized by Rose Bouthillier, Associate Curator.

Xavier Cha was born in Los Angeles and she currently lives and works in New York. Solo exhibitions of her works have been held at the Whitney Mu- seum of American Art (2011); Contemporary Art Museum, St. Louis (2010); and 47 Canal, New York (2012). Her performances have been presented at INOVA, Milwaukee, WI (2015); and New Museum, New York (2013). She has been included in group exhibitions at Kunstalle Düsseldorf, Germany (2014); Institute of Contemporary Art, Philadelphia, PA (2012); The Kitchen, New York, NY (2015); Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, CA (2009); and the 12 Biennale de Lyon (2013). In 2014, Cha was the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship for Creative Arts.